RISK is many things. It can invoke fun, temptation, or danger; it can be laced with uncertainty, fear, or hope. But most importantly for the design professions, risk is the engine of art and innovation. Complicating the risks inherent in every act of environmental design are two now dominant threats to humanity: climate change and social inequality, both of which are expected to make Earth a more volatile, dystopian planet. Risk reduction—under the rubric of resilience—is the new paradigm for landscape architecture and urbanism.

LA+ RISK invited contributors to consider the relationship between design and the evolving landscape of risk; to explore the ways in which risk shapes our behavior and impacts our experiences of designed environments.

In this issue:

– Futurist Andrew Zolli discusses the development of satellite technology that helps make planetary change visible, accessible, and actionable.

– Philosopher Mark Kingwell examines the role that risk plays in geopolitical life.

– Energy researchers Mark Alan Hughes, Cornelia Colijn and Oscar Serpell draw an instructive comparison between the management of watersheds and energy systems in the United States to reduce service-based risk.